Provided your Mac has either a built-in optical drive or an external one attached, the option DVD or CD Sharing will be the first in the list of sharing services that OS X can provide.

To enable Remote Disc on your host Mac, open System Preferences and select Sharing. It's important to note that Remote Disc isn't secure, data is not encrypted when transmitted over the network and access control is done by requesting permission. Remote Disc is rather straightforward to set up and, once configured, can be left on for continued access.

If your Mac lacks a built-in optical drive as standard, Remote Disc will be available for you to use. Indeed, the Windows software that provides this functionality from a PC hasn't even been updated since it was released, still sitting at v1.0. Remote Disc hasn't really changed since it was introduced, requiring at least Mac OS X 10.4.11 or above on the host Mac that's equipped with an optical drive. To avoid these limitations, a USB optical drive would be needed. Writing to CDs and DVDs is also not possible. The feature doesn't support audio CDs, video DVDs, OS installations and games that require constant disc access.

It can only really be used with data CDs and DVDs, such as software installers. Limitationsĭespite it's supposed versatility, Remote Disc is rather limited. Although the launch was only six years ago, neither the App Store or Mac App Store existed, and software was still most commonly distributed on CDs and DVDs.įor MacBook Air owners wanting to still install software from CDs and DVDs, many of whom need a way of installing Microsoft Office, Apple introduced a Remote Disc, providing local network access to another Mac or PC's optical drive. When the original MacBook Air launched in 2008, it was the first Mac in over a decade designed without a built-in optical drive. While OS X is compatible with a wide range of USB optical drives (including Apple's own USB SuperDrive), it includes a built-in feature that allows it to share the optical drive of another Mac or PC on the same network, called Remote Disc. Optical media is a dying format, thanks largely in part to services such as iTunes and the App Store, so it's no surprise that Apple has been slowing phasing out a built-in drive from their Mac lineup, leaving just the entry-level 13' MacBook Pro unchanged.

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